This department offers study in the following graduate degree programs: AGRICULTURAL AND
APPLIED ECONOMICS, Master ofScience
and Doctor of Philosophy. The department also participates in the
interdepartmental program leading to the Master of Agriculture
degree and cooperates with the College of Business
Administration in a Master of Business Administration
degree with a concentration in agricultural business
management. This M.B.A. program is administered by the College of Business Administration.

Master's programs in Agricultural and Applied Economics require a minimum of 30 hours of graduate credit
for the M.S. thesis option or 36 hours for the M.S. nonthesis option and for the Master of Agriculture degree.
A student seeking an M.S. degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics may choose courses to emphasize
agribusiness management and agricultural finance or international agricultural trade and development. Each candidate in
the M.S. option is expected to demonstrate competency by satisfactorily completing a comprehensive written
examination.

The doctoral program in Agricultural and Applied Economics is designed to develop competence in
advanced economic theory, techniques of quantitative analysis, and public administration of economic and agricultural issues.
The program has been designed to take advantage of the strengths of the Department of Agricultural and
Applied Economics and the supporting disciplines of economics, mathematics, statistics, business administration,
political science (public administration), sociology, and the other agricultural sciences. A program with different
emphases in the supporting areas is possible with the approval of the departmental graduate committee. Each candidate
is expected to demonstrate competency by satisfactorily completing a comprehensive written examination in
each specialty field chosen, a dissertation demonstrating original independent scholarly research, and a final oral
examination.

Before being recommended for admission to a degree program with a major in Agricultural and Applied
Economics, the student may be required to take (without graduate credit) undergraduate leveling courses as specified
by the department.

The School of Law and the Graduate School of Texas Tech University offer a joint degree program that
allows students to complete the requirements for the Master of Science degree in Agricultural and Applied Economics
and the Doctor of Jurisprudence degree. This joint program can be completed one year quicker than when each
is pursued separately. The M.S. component is administered by the Department of Agricultural and Applied
Economics on behalf of the Graduate School, while the J.D. component is administered by the School of Law.

The joint degree program is of particular benefit to students who are interested in practicing law in an
agricultural setting or who want to pursue certain types of careers in agricultural finance. Students must be admitted
to both programs but the LSAT test will suffice for both applications.

Courses in Agricultural and Applied Economics. (AAEC)

5100. Seminar (1:1:0). Current agricultural economic problems. F, S.

5301. Special Study in Agricultural Economics (3).
Individual and group study in advanced topics in agricultural economics not
treated in other graduate courses. May be repeated for credit. F, S, SS.

5309. International Agricultural Development (3:3:0).
Prerequisite: AAEC 3315 or consent of instructor. World food and
development issues; economic development of the agricultural sector in advanced and developing nations. F.

5312. Agribusiness Analysis (3:3:0).
Prerequisite: AAEC 3315 or equivalent. Application of economic theory and methodology to
the management problems of the agricultural business firm. F.

5313. Microcomputer Applications in Agriculture (3:2:2).
Use of microcomputers, software, and design of software for
agricultural business and research purposes. Programming in BASIC, use of database systems and telecommunications. S, SS.

5317. Financial and Agricultural Futures and Options (3:3:0).
Mechanics of futures trading, history and functions of futures market.
Role of futures and options markets in managing agricultural and financial risks. F, S, SS.

5321. Research Methodology in Economics (3:3:0).
Review of philosophical and conceptual basis of economic research and study
of the procedural aspects of designing, planning, and conducting research in economics. S.

7200. Teaching Practicum (2:3:0). Prerequisite: Doctoral student in the program and previous or concurrent enrollment in a
higher education teaching methods course. Supervised teaching at the university level.